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NCCSALW rejects viral video linking Ribadu to 399 seized rifles.The Centre describes the allegation as false and baseless. It says Customs intercepted the weapons at Tin Can Island Port.
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Two suspects remain in custody over the illegal arms shipment. Kokumo confirms 399 automatic weapons were handed over by Customs.
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The seized weapons are now secured in an armoury. Security agencies probe the masterminds behind the arms consignment. Investigators are working to identify the Nigerian criminal elements.
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The two suspects remain in custody as investigations continue. NCCSALW warns over alleged calls for violence in viral video.
September 03, (THEWILL) — The National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW) has dismissed as false and baseless a viral video alleging that suspects arrested over the seizure of 399 assorted automatic weapons at the Tin Can Island Port, Lagos, were sponsored by the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu.
The Director-General of the NCCSALW, DIG Johnson Kokumo (retd.), made the clarification in Abuja during Tuesday’s joint security spokespersons’ briefing, insisting that the circumstances surrounding the seizure and subsequent handover of the weapons were verifiable.
Kokumo said he was personally present at the Tin Can Island Port when the Nigeria Customs Service intercepted the weapons and handed them over to the Centre.
He said the Comptroller-General of Customs was also personally present during the handover, contradicting the narrative contained in the viral video.
“The story in the video is not correct and cannot be correct,” Kokumo said.
According to him, 399 assorted automatic weapons were intercepted by Customs at the port before being handed over to the NCCSALW for safe custody.
“I was at the Tin Can Island Port with the Comptroller-General. 399 assorted automatic weapons were intercepted by the Nigerian Customs Service at the port.
“And this cache of arms, illegal weapons, was handed over to the Centre. I was not there in a representative capacity; I was there personally. And the Comptroller-General, of course, was also present personally to do the handing over,” he said.
THEWILL reports that the clarification follows a viral online video of the identities and alleged sponsorship of persons arrested in connection with the illegal arms shipment.
Kokumo rejected the claims linking the suspects to Ribadu, describing the contents of the video as baseless.
He also alleged that the video went beyond making claims about the arms seizure, as it allegedly called for violence against the NSA and other individuals.
Two Suspects In Custody
The NCCSALW boss disclosed that two suspects arrested in connection with the illegal importation remain in custody as security agencies intensify investigations.
He said the investigation was not limited to the immediate suspects but was being expanded to uncover the wider network behind the consignment.
“As I’m talking to you, the arms are in a secured armoury. Two suspects arrested in connection with the illegal importation are currently in custody,” Kokumo said.
He added that investigators were working to identify criminal elements operating within Nigeria and establish whether the shipment was connected to international criminal networks.
“Investigation is ongoing with a view to bringing to book the criminal elements in Nigeria and possibly identifying their international criminal partners outside the shores of Nigeria,” he said.
The 399 weapons were formally handed over to the NCCSALW on August 17, 2026, following their interception by Customs at the Lagos port.
The centre has consequently maintained that the physical seizure and custody of the weapons are separate from the unverified allegations contained in the viral video.
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Over 19,000 Illicit Weapons Destroyed
Kokumo also used the briefing to highlight the Federal Government’s broader efforts to remove illicit firearms from circulation.
He disclosed that the Centre’s Second Quarter Arms Destruction Exercise for 2026, conducted on July 30 at the Muhammadu Buhari Cantonment, Giri, Abuja, resulted in the public destruction of 1,419 illicit weapons.
The latest exercise, he said, brought the cumulative number of illicit weapons destroyed by the Centre since 2022 to more than 19,000.
The destruction programme is aimed at preventing recovered weapons from being diverted back into criminal circulation or falling into the hands of non-state actors.
Kokumo said the exercise was also in line with international obligations and agreements to which Nigeria is a signatory, including frameworks under the United Nations, African Union and ECOWAS.
According to him, the Federal Government remains concerned about the proliferation of firearms that could be used by terrorists, bandits, kidnappers, armed robbers and other violent criminal groups.
The NCCSALW director-general further disclosed that the Centre received 5,050 illicit, unserviceable, decommissioned and obsolete assorted automatic weapons retrieved from the Nigeria Police Force in June 2026.
Kokumo also confirmed that the 399 JOJEF automatic guns intercepted by the Nigeria Customs Service were handed over to the NCCSALW on August 17.
The weapons are currently being kept in a secured armoury, while the two suspects arrested in connection with the shipment remain in custody.
Government Not Targeting Local Artisans
Amid the renewed focus on illegal firearms, Kokumo stressed that the Federal Government was not targeting legitimate local arms manufacturers.
He explained that traditional local gun makers, including artisans who manufacture Dane guns used by hunters in rural communities, should not be lumped together with criminal manufacturers of sophisticated illicit weapons.
“From time immemorial, in villages in Nigeria, we have traditional, well-aligned rights where people even fire for joy, they use Dane guns to do all this. We have local hunters who go into the bushes to hunt for rats and rabbits,” he said.
According to him, such firearms are traditionally manufactured by local artisans, while the Centre’s major concern is the increasing circulation of sophisticated weapons.
“What we are seeing now is the introduction of sophisticated weapons,” Kokumo said.
He said security agencies were particularly interested in criminal manufacturers producing sophisticated illicit firearms for criminal purposes.
The NCCSALW boss added that the government had identified some talented local manufacturers whose skills could potentially be redirected towards legitimate national service.
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